X2nSat, a satellite communications company based in Petaluma, CA has joined forces with a group of engineering students at New Mexico State University (NMSU) to create a sensor to measure ocean temperatures.
The college of engineering at NMSU plans to measure ocean temperatures from San Francisco to Hawaii’s Kaneohe island during the bi-annual Pacific Cup race. The race spans roughly 2,000 miles of ocean from coast to coast and will be an invaluable resource for the students at NMSU.
X2nSat’s Engineering team will be supporting the NMSU students not only by providing Satellite equipment to monitor their results in real time, but also providing feedback and guidance on their sensor design as it progresses.
This week, X2nSat’s engineering team and the students from NMSU met to finalize the initial mockup design of the sensor. They collaboratively developed a torpedo design that ensures the device is lightweight and can travel easily in the water without slowing down the boat that deploys it.
X2nSat and NMSU designed the innovative torpedo shape for the Pacific Ocean water-testing project because “this type of encapsulation offers less water resistance while providing a water-sealed option to house required electronics,” said Enrique Amezcua, the Engineering and Network Operations Manager at X2nSat.
Now that they’ve decided how to design the device, the NMSU and X2nSat engineering teams are working together to define designs, list components, and figure out costs so they can complete this project.
“Moving forward I would like to work closer with the respective X2nSat engineering experts as we refine our design. It was great to get confirmation and guidance on how we are proceeding with this project. X2nSat’s encouraging and insightful guidance was much needed.” Said Caleb Gustin, a senior mechanical engineering major at NMSU.
The sensor is set to be completed June 2020, just in time for the Pacific Cup race.